Leveraging the power of the internet and technology is a great way to promote your business. After all, what could be an easier, cheaper way to gain access to an enormous chunk of the population? According to a report1 on internet usage and population statistics- June 30, 2018, internet penetration in North America was 95%. A growth of 219% was recorded in internet users over the period 2000- 2018. Clearly, using internet tools as a means to spread the word about you is sure to be an effective move. In fact, this might be the most effective tool you could use because the audience of today searches for vendors/ service providers/ businesses online before identifying one to go with.

That is not all, and most customers also research a service provider or business online to satisfy themselves about their credentials before they decide to go with them. This is where a webinar, in particular, plays a key role in helping you build your brand in the right way. As a consultant, you want to demonstrate to prospective clients that you are an expert in your chosen field and the best way to do this is by showcasing your knowledge on a platform that is easily accessible. A webinar is the perfect choice for achieving this objective if you use it in the right way.

How to make sure your webinar is an effective brand builder

• Address a challenge: Identify a common problem that prospective clients face in your niche and address it through your webinar. Remember that you are not here to give a comprehensive solution through this medium- just give enough information that could be helpful to the client, perhaps give them an idea of what could be a solution. However, your main agenda is to showcase that you know how to deal with the problem so that the prospective clients who watch the webinar think of you when they are looking for someone to help them with the problem. Think of your webinar as a teaser for your services.

• Maintain a professional stance: While it is necessary to appear approachable and friendly in your webinar, you also need to seem like a competent professional who is capable of delivering results. Maintaining complete professionalism during your webinar is very crucial, and that means you pay attention to your clothing, your body language, your gestures, the words you use, etc. When shooting your webinar imagine that you are talking face to face with a very valued client.

• Repeat the webinar: There is no guarantee that all the potential targets for your webinar are free when you air it and that means many might have missed it. Repeating the webinar on a regular basis is a great way to maximize audience coverage with this promotional tool. Remember to spread the word about the webinar airing time/ date well in advance every time you plan to repeat it so that those who are interested do accommodate it into their schedule.

• Collect the right data: Your webinar audience is clearly interested in your area of expertise. Invest efforts in collecting data like email ids or social media account details of each viewer so that you can later make them part of your email list or add them to your SNS groups so that you can continuously engage with them. Your webinar can bring you a primed group of prospective clients- don’t fail to leverage this asset.

Planning out your brand building strategies is one of the crucial steps you must take right when you set up your business, along with taking out the right kind of insurance to cover all risks, hiring the right employees, establishing a foolproof feedback system, etc. With the right panning in the initial stages, you have laid a solid foundation for success with your consultancy business.

Conclusion: Brand building becomes easy when you use internet tools like webinars to spread the word about yourself and your brand. You can achieve impressive results if you use these tools in the right way to communicate your message effectively.

It used to be that graduating students with large amounts of student loan debt were told to forget purchasing a home until after they’d paid down their debt. Still others were told to wait until they’d built up years of work history, delaying the initial purchase of a home for years. Today, however, more and more millennials are finding it possible to qualify for a mortgage while paying off student loan debt. How?

They Have Good Credit

Credit scores range anywhere from 350 to 850, with anything below 600 considered a poor score. Most mortgage lending programs, even those that are federally funded for first-time buyers, look for scores of at least 620. Those with excellent credit, above about 750, will stand an even higher chance of securing a mortgage with student loan debt.

If your credit score may be an issue, follow these steps to move toward improving it:

● Address any delinquencies – it’s important you address delinquencies immediately. If possible, pay the account off entirely.

● Set up auto-pay – setting up auto-pay features for all your debts will ensure each payment is made on time. Building a lengthening history of paying every debt on time each month makes you much more attractive to lenders.

● Avoid applying for new credit that may go unused – applications are typically a ding on your credit, so even if you don’t intend to use the upper limits of a new card, it may hurt your score.

● Don’t close paid accounts – credit cards you’ve paid off can positively affect your credit score. If you are not using all of your available credit, open, empty credit cards can be helpful.

They Have a Lower Debt-to-Income Ratio

Debt-to-income (DTI) ratio is calculated as your monthly debt payments compared to your monthly income. If you are paying off a student loan in addition to credit card debt, you’ll need a relatively high monthly income to offset the amount of debt you’re carrying. Lenders will focus on your debt-to-income ratio to determine if you can afford another debt – your mortgage – in addition to what you’re already carrying. Paying off credit cards or student loans and maximizing your earning potential can help on both fronts.

You can also consider consolidating debt with a personal loan. If you have a great deal of credit card debt, you likely have a variety of higher interest rates. A personal loan is a stable debt rather than revolving debt like a credit card, and reflects positively on your credit history. You’ll likely receive a lower rate in addition to freeing up available credit.

They’ve Secured Employment in Their Field

Lenders will consider your employment history to determine if you have the steady income required to continue to make mortgage payments. If you’ve recently graduated, you may not have the recommended two years of steady employment. However, underwriters will often consider a move from college straight into gainful employment in your chosen field a substitute for part of your employment history.

They’ve Refinanced or Restructured Student Loans

When lenders look at your debt-to-income ratio, student loans are among the debts they’ll consider. If your payments are unwieldy, consider applying for an income-driven repayment plan through the U.S. Department of Education. These plans consider your income and often provide a lower payment than the typical graduated repayment program. If your income increases, you can increase your repayment to ensure you continue to pay down your loans.

Another solution that can lower your monthly payments is refinancing your student loans. Loans refinanced through banks or other institutions typically carry lower interest rates and lower monthly payments than the original federal loans. As with other loans, you’ll need to consider your creditworthiness, income, and debt-to-income ratio.

They’ve Qualified for Down Payment Assistance

Though the traditional down payment is 20% or more, several programs exist to reduce your down payment in order to speed up the homebuying process for those with student loan and other debt. For example, FHA loans by the Federal Housing Authority offer a much lower percentage – 3.5% for those with credit scores in the 600s and above, and 10% for those in the 500s. HomeReady loans targeted at first-time home buyers offer even lower down payment terms of around 3%.

Find a lender that works with these and other first-time home buyer and down payment assistance programs. Many lenders do not offer zero down payment, but still offer a variety of other loan types that could meet your needs. Obviously, if you have the means to provide a 20% down payment, you’ll lower the principal on your loan, but these assistance programs can put buying your first home within your grasp.

Today’s millennials with student debt are qualifying for mortgages, and chances are, you can too. Overall, pay close attention to your credit score and making your payments on time. Keep your other debt low, and ask your lender about assistance programs that may be available to you. Finally, if you’re in the market for a home, get pre-approved first to see just how much home you can afford. Then, if you find the home of your dreams, you’ll know you can move forward, even while you’re paying off your student loan debt.

Information is provided by Sammamish Mortgage, a Premiere Mortgage Company in Pacific Northwest including WA, ID, OR, CO.